Erin Sullivan and Peri Ouyang show off their collection of tiles for the Hayward Girl Scout Cabin restoration project.

By Terry Liebowitz

SPECIAL TO THE FORUM

As they approach graduation, Girl Scouts Erin Sullivan and Peri Ouyang chose the restoration of the Hayward Girl Scout Cabin to fulfill the prestigious Gold Award.

Like the Boy Scout’s Eagle Scout Award, the Gold Award is the highest achievement in Girl Scouts.

Erin and Peri hope for a big turn out at Aran’s Art Studio in the Village from 5 to 9 p.m. this Saturday, May 19, to decorate tiles for the cabin’s restoration. Each tile costs $25, with $20 going toward the cabin’s restoration fund. The tiles will decorate the hearth in the renovated cabin.

Six girls in Castro Valley Girl Scout Troop #32518 are about to earn Gold Awards. Most of these girls have been together since first grade when Berenice Sullivan and Ana Portillo volunteered to lead their Brownie troop. Today, Sullivan and Portillo are still shepherding  the  girls in their community projects and service.

“We are very proud of the work our girls are doing for the Gold Award projects,” said Sullivan. “The  Girl Scouts Cabin has been an integral part of our scouting years.”

The urban hideaway is nestled among the trees in Memorial Park, up the hill from the Hayward Plunge off Mission Blvd. After almost 72 years of use, this meeting place, overnight camping facility and summer camp location needs a major overhaul.

Pipe repairs alone are estimated at $12,000. The 40-year-old stove, the vandalized front door and rickety plumbing fixtures need replacing.  Girl Scout Troop 32361 and the Chabot Day Camp are also working to make this project a reality.

Anyone wishing to donate money, time or materials can reach the girls at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Digging In: This group of Earth Day Volunteers spruced up the Castro Valley High School Campus by planting flowers at various locations.

More than 1,200 Castro Valley residents and business people dropped off recyclables, pharmaceuticals, and documents for shredding during Saturday’s Earth Day Cleanu-up and Recycle event sponsored by CVSan, the Castro Valley Sanitary District.

Local volunteers and staff from Waste Management teamed up to collect reusable goods, 295 pounds of medicines and old prescription drugs, and 450 boxes of paper for shredding.

“Castro Valley residents ‘closed the loop’ by taking home 3,900 bags of EarthCare compost made from their very own food scraps and yard trimmings,” said Roland P. Williams, Jr., CVSan General Manager. “We have become a true example of sustainability.”

In addition, more than 900 volunteers cleared some 50 cubic yards of organic debris and 10 cubic yards of garbage.

The next scheduled CVSan Recycles Day event will be on Aug. 11. For more information, visit www.cvsan.org.

Once the home of a bustling downtown department store, the long-empty Daughtrey building on Castro Valley Blvd. may be sold in the next few months.

By Robert Souza

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

County officials say half a dozen interested parties are looking to buy Castro Valley’s old Daughtrey’s site on the Boulevard, which has been mostly unused for more than a score of years.

The 30,000-square-foot building is a vestige of the time when shoppers came here from miles around to shop for everything from clothes to what people used to call “sundries.”

At a meeting last Thursday, County Economic Director Bill Lambert said the property will likely be sold in the next few months, but whether for renovation or demolition isn’t known.

“Offers are in and we are working with buyers on conditions regarding how we can sell the building,” said Lambert.

The Alameda County Redevelopment Agency purchased the site for $2.8 million in 2010 and was in the process of negotiating with developers to revitalize the building. That was halted last year when redevelopment agencies throughout the state were shut down.

There is no deadline for the disposition of about a dozen such properties owned by the county and estimated to be worth millions of dollars.

Lambert said the sale of the Daughtery site will be discussed by a newly-created redevelopment oversight board next week.

Pete’s Hardware store in 1932.

By Robert Souza

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

Pete’s Ace Hardware will receive the Historic Business Award from the Hayward Area Historical Society this Friday for its outstanding contribution to the preservation of the community’s history during its 86 years of business.

Pete’s opened in 1926 by Hungarian immigrants Pete Selmeczki and his wife Mary. In its early years, the store supplied the hardware for one of the largest chicken production areas in the world in an era that popularized the Castro Valley slogan, “Crowin’ Because We’re Growin’.”

Selmeczki’s granddaughter, Linda Roark, now operates the business with her husband Jeff and their son Jason, making it a four-generation business.

“It was a very pleasant surprise and we are honored that the community thought so much of us and what we do,” Roark said of the upcoming award.

The Roarks have expanded and modernized the landmark store at 2569 Castro Valley Boulevard, but pride themselves on retaining the same old-fashioned service and helpful advice that has made Pete’s an icon in the hardware world.

In addition to being one of our town’s first entrepreneurs, Pete Selmeczki helped assemble the pioneer Castro Valley fire department and was a key player in bringing water service and sewer lines to the town. He died in 1952 at the age of 62.

The awards ceremony, which includes a buffet dinner with live music, will begin at 5:30 p.m. this Friday, April 20, at the Stonebrae Country Club, 27900 Fairview Ave. in Hayward.

All who wish to support the 2012 award winners are welcome to attend. To purchase tickets or request an invitation, call Alison Wenz at 510-581-0223. Tickets are $65 for society members and $75 for non-members.

For more information about the award winners and the Historical Society, visit www.haywardareahistory.org.

Workers begin construction of a fiber optic ring which, by the end of July, will surround much of San Leandro, providing businesses and industry with data transmissions at super-fast speeds. The proximity of the loop could result in a future connection to Castro Valley and provide a platform for development of Silicon Valley-style high-tech industry.

By Robert Souza

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

The expansion of super-fast data transmission into Castro Valley and other nearby communities will be explored next Monday, when Patrick Kennedy holds an information-only meeting with Alameda County Planning Commissioners.

Kennedy is chief executive of OSIsoft, a high-tech data monitoring firm headquartered in San Leandro. His company is building an 11-mile fiber-optic ring around a portion of that city similar to the rings currently in operation in Silicon Valley.

The San Leandro loop is being routed through underground conduits and Kennedy told the Forum that his cable will run within a quarter of a mile of the unincorporated area, making an eventual connection to Castro Valley a possibility. The entire BART system also includes conduits that can carry the high speed cable.

The fiber-optic system sends data by laser beams through glass cables, offering speeds at least a hundred times that of conventional broadband service, so fast that entire movie can be downloaded in about a second.

The cable, less than an inch in diameter, holds 288 flexible glass strands, each about the width of a human hair. Each strand has an enormous capacity for carrying high-speed data. Kennedy’s service is being marketed to businesses, not individuals.

The first portion of Lit San Leandro, as it is called, began operation in March and is expected to be completed by the end of July, paid for by $3 million of Kennedy’s own money.

“This is an opportunity for property or business owners to hear the value and possibilities that could benefit San Leandro and Castro Valley,” explained Planning Commissioner Ken Carbone. “I want the unincorporated areas including Castro Valley to come find out more about this and have the same opportunities that other cities have.”

The Planning Commission meeting will be held at 6 p.m. next Monday, April 16, in Room 160 at the County Building at 224 West Winton Ave. in Hayward. Call 510-670-5400 for more information.

Some of the members of the local Quester 49er group gathered near the flatscreen television and display case they donated to the Castro Valley Library’s history section.

By Robert Souza

CASTRO VALLEY FORUM

Ever wondered who the “founding fathers” of Castro Valley were, or how many chicken ranches lined our roads before they were replaced by apartments and houses?

Members of the local Quester 49ers chapter have made it easy for you to find out.

The group has donated $1,500 for a display case and a flat screen television to the Castro Valley Library’s local history section that shows images and information about Castro Valley ranging from the time of the Ohlone Indians to the more recent era of the controversial “Welcome” sign.

The donation is something that makes Castro Valley’s unofficial historian and Questers-president Lucille Lorge very proud.

“I love to come here and see people stop and watch the slide show. It’s really a great thing,” said Lorge who presides over the 15-member group that meets regularly to promote the study of antiques through research.

The Questers were responsible for replacing etched glass panels by the front door at the Historic Meek Mansion in Cherryland and repairs to the skylight at the McConaghy House  in Hayward.